Improving Our Understanding of Cognitive Aging in American Indian Peoples

Although Alzheimer disease and related disorders are common, debilitating conditions in all populations, converging evidence has shown that the risk of developing dementia is disproportionately prevalent in minoritized and marginalized racial and ethnic populations. In light of this growing understanding, it is incumbent on researchers in cognitive disorders to focus attention on populations that have been systematically subjected to historical and ongoing inequities. In particular, American Indian peoples are at higher risk of developing Alzheimer disease and related disorders compared with non-Hispanic White persons, with approximately 35% of American Indian elders developing dementia between the ages of 65 and 90 years, compared with 30% of non-Hispanic White elders.(1,2) In this issue of Neurology (R), Suchy-Dicey et al.(3) examine longitudinal changes in cognitive performance and brain structures in a large cohort of older American Indian peoples, adding valuably to our understanding of the emergence of cognitive changes in this population.